Future wars cannot be fought by individual services: Air Chief Marshal AP Singh

Air Chief Marshal AP Singh stressed the need for joint operations among India’s armed forces, faster technology development and self-reliance in defence. Speaking at INS Malvan’s commissioning, he praised indigenous shipbuilding, maritime security efforts and urged aviation to follow the Navy’s model

Karwar: Air Chief Marshal A P Singh on Wednesday said future wars cannot be fought by individual military services, underscoring the need for greater jointness among the armed forces.

Speaking after the commissioning of INS Malvan, the second of the Mahe-class Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC), Singh said military technologies must be developed at a pace that keeps them relevant as “technology delayed is technology denied”.

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He also called for faster progress towards self-reliance in the aviation sector, particularly referring to the Indian Air Force (IAF).

“No future war is going to be fought by an individual service. All of us, whether we are in blues (IAF), whites (Navy), or OGs (Olive Green of the Army), or whichever colour, whether we are in allied services, we all have to fight together as one nation, and then only we will succeed,” he said.

Singh said that the momentum that this collective mission has gained over the last four to five years, particularly after the creation of the Chief of Defence Staff post, will continue to grow stronger. “All of us will move forward together and bring greater glory to the nation,” he said.

The commissioning ceremony was attended by Vice Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command, senior naval officers, veterans and representatives of state-run Cochin Shipyard Ltd.

The IAF chief said, “We all understand how important maritime security and the maritime power for India’s growth are. Because any nation, they say, the maritime routes decide your trade and your trade decides your destiny. And as far as India is concerned, we all understand how important the Indian Ocean region is to us.” He said the Indian Navy has been playing a vital role in securing sea lines of communication and ensuring that Indian trade and economic growth continue unhindered.

Without naming the Iran-US conflict, Singh said that developments around the world in recent times have strengthened the belief that no country can succeed unless it has secure sea lines of communication and free trade.

Referring to the government’s thrust on self-reliance, the Air Chief said the Navy had made significant progress in indigenous shipbuilding and expressed hope that the aviation sector would emulate the model.

“I just hope that the other two services, especially the Indian Air Force, learn the lesson as to how the Indian Navy has been able to get this whole concept right, where you have your Indian Navy officers who are embedded in your shipbuilding right from the beginning,” he said.

Singh said these people grow up in the same chain and become even the seniormost in those shipyards. “And even after retirement, they continue to render the services. Something similar, I think, the Indian Air Force has to adopt to make sure that even in the aviation sector, our self-reliance, our dream of being self-reliant becomes a reality and becomes a reality soon,” he said.

He said that the Air Force was steadily moving closer to achieving its dream of self-reliance. “The Indian Navy adopted this vision of self-reliance very early on. In fact, it is we who took longer, because different sectors require different amounts of time to develop,” he added.

The Air Chief said that INS Malvan has around 80 per cent indigenous content by value, which reflects the success of the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative.

He said the country was moving closer towards the goal of self-reliance, adding that while some components still needed to be sourced or co-produced abroad, those gaps would eventually be bridged.

Emphasising the importance of indigenous research and development, Singh said military technologies must be developed at a pace that keeps them relevant.

“If you are growing at a speed that by the time you design and develop something, by the time you produce something, the world has moved over to a new technology, then that has no meaning. According to me, any technology delayed is technology denied,” he said.

He said the growth of indigenous R&D (research and development) and production capabilities was encouraging, though the country still had some distance to cover before achieving its targets.

Singh also praised the Indian Navy for inducting its seventh warship this year and commended Cochin Shipyard and the Navy’s project teams for successfully delivering INS Malvan.

Referring to Naval Base Karwar, where the commissioning ceremony was held, Singh described it as one of the world’s most modern naval bases and a symbol of India’s maritime strategic vision under Project Seabird, an ambitious naval infrastructure initiative.